1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates, generally, to inflator manifolds of the type used to rapidly inflate life jackets and other inflatable articles. More particularly, it relates to an inflator manifold having plastic parts.
2. Description of the Prior Art
When CO.sub.2 or other suitable gaseous fluid is used to inflate an inflatable article, a check valve must be provided in the inflator manifold to block reverse flow of the gaseous fluid.
The known inflator manifold assemblies include effective check valves and otherwise perform their intended function, but they are somewhat expensive due to their metallic construction. It might at first appear reasonable to use a less expensive material such as a plastic, but a number of considerations have prevented the art from adopting plastic as a material from which the assemblies could be made. First of all, plastic lacks the strength of metal and a plastic manifold having the same wall thickness as a metallic manifold will fail at a lower pressure than its metallic counterpart. Next, industry standards have been promulgated that limit the external diameter of inflator manifolds. Thus, if the walls of a plastic manifold are thickened in an external direction to provide greater strength, the resulting manifold does not meet the prescribed standard size. If the walls are thickened in an inward direction, the bore or passageway for the gaseous fluid becomes so small that the conventional check valve assembly will not fit therein.
Accordingly, the conventional wisdom is that plastic inflator manifolds are impractical and will not become practical until the industry standards are changed to allow larger manifolds, or until super strong plastics are developed.